Ocado Shares Climb as Mutual Exclusivity With Most International Partners Has Now Ended

Ocado (LON: OCDO) shares rose 1.8 percent to 244.2 pence early Tuesday after the company said mutual exclusivity agreements with retailers in most of its international markets have now ended, including in the U.S. with Kroger.

The company had signaled in its half-year results in July that it expected to roll off the majority of exclusivity arrangements by year-end. Ocado said the shift will allow it to take its “proven and much evolved technology offering back to market in many of the world’s largest grocery markets.”

Ocado continues to work with existing grocery partners and plans to build on “positive progress” across global markets.

With exclusivity lifted in most regions where its customer fulfillment centers are live, the company now expects to begin new commercial activity in multiple international grocery markets.

Chief Executive Tim Steiner stated that Ocado will “bring the full range of Ocado’s AI-powered and robotic solutions back to multiple markets,” noting that the company has “substantially evolved” its platform since launching its first international sites five years ago.

Steiner said the company’s fulfillment technologies now span “Store-Based Automation, AI-powered manual fulfilment in stores and dark stores, and automated CFCs of all sizes.”

He added that the combination enables partners to offer delivery options “from immediacy to same-day, next day, and click-and-collect.”

Ocado believes it is entering 2026 well-positioned to help retailers capture share in what it calls the world’s fastest-growing grocery channel.